Finishing method

ABSTRACT

A finishing plug is pre-cast from a mixture of Portland cement, sand, and water and is shaped similarly to plastic cones of the type used to position wall forms during the construction of concrete walls. The finishing plug has a flat end surface and is mounted in a hole remaining in a concrete wall following the removal of a plastic cone from the wall with the end surface of the plug flush with the wall surface. This is preferably accomplished by first coating the finishing plug with a liquid cementuous material and then inserting the plug into the hole. The finishing plug is shorter than the plastic cone so as to accommodate a tie rod portion which may project into the hole.

llnited States Patent 1191 ElllOtt Aug. 6, 1974 FINISHING METHOD PrimaryExaminer-Price C. Faw, Jr. [76] Inventor: James Madison Elliott, 3509Attorney Agent or F'rm R'chardS Hams &

Matador, Garland, Tex. 75042 Medlock [22] Filed: June 19, 1972 57ABSTRACT [2]] Appl. No.: 264,013 A. finishing plug is pre-cast from amixture of Portland cement, sand, and water and is shaped similarly toplastic cones of the type used to position wall forms 3 gd g g gg duringthe construction of concrete walls. The finish- [58] Field of Search52/741, 744, 127; 156/71, mg Plug h a l end Surface and l 3 156/293 holeremammgnn a concrete wall following the removal of a plastic cone fromthe wall with the end surface of the plug flush with the wall surface.This is [56] References Cited preferably accomphshed by first coatingthe finishing UNITED STATES PATENTS plug with a liquid cementuousmaterial and then in- 2,728,l27 l2/l955 Armstrong 52/127 erting the intothe hole The finishing plug is g; g z

shorter than the plastic cone so as to accommodate a n erson 3,724,0604/1973 McElroy 52/741 x rod porno whlch my project "n the holej 10Claims, 4 Drawing Figures o O 5 2- l v a v o a 0 w u a l/ 1 FINISHINGMETHOD BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates tofinishing plugs, and more particularly to a method of and apparatus forforming flush wall surfaces on concrete walls.

It is common practice in the construction industry to maintain apredetermined spaced relationship between opposed wall forms by means oftie rod assemblies. These assemblies comprise steel tie rods havingopposed shoulders and weakened sections adjacent the shoulders. A pairof rigid plastic cones are mounted on each tie rod on opposite sides ofthe shoulders.

In use, tie rod assemblies are installed between opposed wall forms andinclude portions projecting through the forms. Wedging apparatus is thenpositioned between the projecting ends of the tie rods and the wallforms and is utilized to force the wall forms inwardly. This causes thewall forms to engage the plastic cones and the plastic cones to engagethe shoulders on the tie rods. By this means there is formed a veryrigid assembly characterized by the desired spaced relationship betweenthe opposed wall forms.

After all of the tie rod assemblies have been installed between a pairof opposed wall forms, concrete is poured into the space between theforms. The concrete is allowed to set whereby a concrete wall is formedbetween the forms. The Wedging apparatus and the wall forms are thenremoved and are retained for subsequent utilization.

After the forms have been removed, the projecting ends of the tie rodassemblies are broken away. This is easily accomplished by simplytwisting the projecting ends of each tie rod, whereby the tie rod snapsat its weakened sections. The projecting ends and the plastic cones arethen pulled out of the wall and are discarded. At this point the wallcomprises opposed wall surfaces which are substantially flat but whichhave holes in them corresponding in size and shape to the plastic conesof the tie rod assemblies.

Heretofore it has been the practice to fill the holes remaining in theconcrete wall following the removal of plastic cones from the wall witha concrete mixture. There are several disadvantages to this procedure.Thus, union regulations require that the holes be filled by a relativelyhighly paid laborer known as a finisher". It may also be necessary toemploy an additional laborer merely to keep the concrete mixture at theproper consistency. The net result is that the costs in volved infilling holes in concrete walls by this procedure are relatively high.

Another disadvantage to the present procedure is that due to shrinkage,each hole must be filled twice. That is, each hole is initially filledwith the concrete mixture which is then allowed to set. As the concretesets a dimple is formed which must subsequently be filled in order toprovide a completely flush wall surface. The necessity of filling eachhole twice causes the work of filling the holes to proceed quite slowly.By way of example, a finisher/ laborer team is typically able to finishan average of only about twenty holes per hour.

The present invention comprises an improved method of and apparatus forfilling holes resulting in concrete walls from the removal of theplastic cones therefrom. In accordance with the broader aspects of theinvention, there is provided precast concrete finishing plugs which aresimilar in shape to the plastic cones. Following removal of the plasticcones from the wall the finishing plugs are mounted in the holes,whereby the holes are filled and a flush wall surface is formed.

In accordance with more specific aspects of the invention, the finishingplugs are identical in shape to the outer portions of the plastic cones,but are substantially shorter than the plastic cones. By this meansthere is provided a void space at the inner end of each hole in the wallwhich accommodates any portion of the tie rod assembly that may projectinto the hole. The plugs are preferably installed by first coating theplugs with a liq uid cementuous material and then tapping the plugs intothe holes in the wall. After the liquid cementuous mixture sets, theplugs are permanently retained.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A more complete understanding of theinvention may be had by referring to the following detailed descriptionwhen taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a wall form assembly which is utilizedprior to the present invention to construct a concrete wall;

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a concrete wall constructed by a means ofthe wall form assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a finishing plug incorporating thepresent invention; and

FIG. 4 is an illustration of the results obtained by means of theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring now to the drawings and particularly toFIG. 1, there is shown a wall form assembly 10 which is utilized priorto the present invention to construct a concrete wall. The wall formassembly 10 includes a plurality of tie rod assemblies 12 eachcomprising an elongate central portion 14 and a pair of end portions 16.The central portion 14 is provided with opposed shoulders 18 and the endportions 16 are connected to the central portion 14 at weakened sections20 located adjacent the shoulders 18. The end portions 16 extend toheads 22 comprising the opposite ends of the tie rod assembly 12.

Each tie rod assembly 12 further includes a pair of rigid cones 24 whichare slidably received on the end portions 16 on the opposite sides ofthe shoulders 18. The cones 24 are typically formed from plastic andhave the cross-section illustrated in FIG. 1. However, it will beunderstood that the cones 24 may comprise other cross-sections and maybe formed from materials other than plastic, if desired.

In addition to the tie rod assemblies 12, the wall form assembly 10includes opposed wall forms 26. The forms 26 are typically formed fromwood or steel and are provided with spaced apertures 28. The diametersof the apertures 28 are such that the heads 22 of the tie rod assemblies12 pass through the apertures 28 but the cones 24 do not.

In the use of the wall form assembly 10, the wall forms 26 are erectedin spaced relation and the tie rods assemblies 12 are mounted betweenthe forms 26 with the end portions 16 projecting through the apertures28. A pair of wooden blocks 30 are then positioned adjacent eachaperture 28 and a wedge 32 is engaged with each end portion 16 of eachtie rod assembly 12. Each wedge 32 comprises a keyhole shaped slot 34including a large diameter portion 36 which receives the head 22 at oneend of a tie rod assembly 12 and a narrow portion 38 extending angularlyoutwardly from the large diameter portion 36.

After the wedges 32 are engaged with the tie rod assemblies 12 they aredriven downwardly (FIG. 1). This applies an outwardly directed force tothe tie rod assemblies l2 and an inwardly directed force to the blocks30 and the wall forms 26. By this means the wall forms 26 are urged intoengagement with the rigid cones 24, and the cones 24 are urged intoengagement with the shoulders 18. Thus, when all the wedges 32 of thewall form assembly have been fully seated the component parts of thewall form assembly 10 comprise a rigid structure which functions tomaintain the wall forms 26 in the desired spaced relationship.

Upon completion of the foregoing procedure concrete is poured into thespace between the wall forms 26. The concrete is allowed to set,whereupon the wedges 32, the wooden blocks 30 and the wall forms 26 areremoved and are retained for subsequent use. The end portions 16 andrigid cones 24 of the tie rod assemblies 12 are then removed by twistingthe end portions 16 to break the tie rod assemblies 12 at the weakenedsections 20 and then pulling both the end portions 16 and the rigidcones 24 out of the concrete wall.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the result of the foregoing steps is a concretewall 40. The wall 40 comprises opposed wall surfaces 42 having conicalholes 44 formed in them. The holes 44 in the wall 40 correspond in sizeand shape to the rigid cones 24 of the tie rod assemblies 12. lt will benoted, however, that ends of the central portions 14 of the tie rodassemblies 12 may extend into the holes 44.

In many instances the holes 44 in the wall 40 do not present a problem.Thus, if a particular wall surface 42 will be unexposed, or if a wallsurface 42 will be covered with bricks, paneling, etc., the holes 44 inthe wall surface are simply left unfilled. On the other hand, if aparticular wall surface 42 will be painted or will be covered withwallpaper or the like, the wall surface must be completely flush.Heretofore this has been accomplished by filling the holes 44 in thewall surface 42 with a wet concrete mixture.

The use of wet concrete to fill holes in a concrete wall isdisadvantageous for a number of reasons. First, the concrete must behand packed into the holes by a relatively highly paid laborer known asa finisher. Second, it is necessary to employ a second laborer merely tomaintain the concrete mixture at the proper consistency. Third, due toshrinkage the initial quantity of concrete in each hole 44 forms adimpled outer surface of the type illustrated in FIG. 2 by the dashedline 46. It is therefore necessary to refill each hole with additionalconcrete in order to provide a completely flush wall surface.

Because of the foregoing factures, the average rate at which holes inconcrete walls can be filled by each finisher/laborer team is about 20holes per hour. Due to the wages that must be paid to the finisher andto the laborer, the resulting cost of filling each hole is more than $1.It will therefore be appreciated that in a case of a typical concretewall, the cost of filling the holes in the wall adds materially to theoverall cost of finishing the wall.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a finishing plug 50 comprisingthe present invention. The plug 50 is precast from a mixture of Portlandcement, sand and water and is substantially identical in shape to therigid cones 24 of the tie rod assemblies 12 that were used in formingthe concrete wall 40. More particularly, the finishing plugs 50 areidentical in size and shape to the outer portions of the holes 44 in thewall 40, but are substantially shorter than the holes so as toaccommodate the ends of the central portions 14 of the tie rodassemblies 12 which may extend into the holes. Each finishing plug 50comprises a flat, circular end surface 52 which is identical in diameterto the diameter of the holes 44 at the wall surface 42.

In the practice of the invention, the finishing plugs 50 of the typeshown in FIG. 3 are manufactured at a facility remote from theconstruction site and are thereafter transported to the constructionsite in bulk. Prior to installation the finishing plugs 50 may bepre-soaked in water, if desired. Also prior to installation there isprepared a liquid cementuous material comprising one pint Grace DarweldC or equivalent, about one quart water depending on temperature, and onegallon Portland cement. The resulting mixture is stirred to theconsistency of paint, whereupon 50 to finishing plugs 50 are placed inthe material. The finishing plugs 50 are then placed in the holes 44 ofthe concrete wall 40 and are tapped into the holes until the endsurfaces 52 of the finishing plugs 50 are flush with the wall surface 42of the wall 40. The liquid cementuous material is then allowed to set,whereupon there is provided a completely flush wall surface.

The results of the use of the invention are illustrated in FIG. 4. Eachfinishing plug 50 is snugly engaged with the interior of itscorresponding hole 44 in the wall 40, and the end surface 52 of eachplug 50 extends flush with the wall surface 42 of the wall 40. However,the innermost portion of the hole 44 is left open so as to accommodatethe end of the central portion 14 of the tie rod assembly 12 which mayproject into the hole 44. The open interior of the hole 44 also createsa partial vacuum which tends to retain the finishing plug 50 in the hole44 until the liquid cementuous material is set.

When finishing plugs 50 have been installed in all of the holes 44 in aparticular wall surface 42 and the liquid cementuous material that wasutilized in installing the finishing plugs has set, the wall surface 42is sanded. It has been found that following sanding it is impossible todistinguish the portions of the wall surface 42 comprising the endsurfaces 52 of the finishing plugs 50 from the remainder of the wallsurface. On completion of the sanding operation, the wall surface isready for further finishing, such as the application of wall paper,painting, or the like.

The use of the present invention results in numerous advantages over theprior art. First, the holes in a wall may be filled about twenty timesfaster by means of finishing plugs incorporating the present inventionthan by means of packing the holes with concrete. Thus, the wall surfaceis ready for sanding and final finishing much more quickly than wouldotherwise be the case. Second, although it is necessary to employ afinisher to install the finishing plugs, it is not necessary to employ alaborer to assist the finisher. These factors result in an overallreduction of the cost of filling each hole in a concrete wall by atleast 80 percent. This in turn materially reduces the overall cost offinishing the wall surface.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate the fact that the presentinvention is readily adaptable to various particular requirements. Thus,the shape of the finishing plugs may be altered in order to match theshape of particular plastic cones. The mixture used in casting thefinishing plugs may also be altered, if desired. Finally, any suitablerigid cementuous material may be used in installing the finishing plugs.

Although preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated inthe accompanying Drawings and described in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it 1 will be understood that the invention is not limitedto the embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements,modifications, and substitutions of parts and elements without departingfrom the spirit ofthe invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A wall construction process including the steps of:

casting a concrete wall of the type comprising a wall surface having aplurality of exposed holes in it at least some of which extend toexposed tie rod end portions; casting concrete finishing plugs eachshaped substantially identically to the portion of each hole in the walladjacent the wall surface and each substantially shorter than the holes;and mounting the concrete plugs in the holes to fill the portions of theholes adjacent the wall and thereby form a flush wall surface. 2. Thewall construction process according to claim 1 wherein the step ofcasting a concrete wall is further characterized by:

engaging a wall form with rigid cones to position the wall form; fillingthe space adjacent the wall form and the cones with concrete; settingthe concrete; and thereafter removing the wall form and the rigid conesand thereby exposing the wall surface and the holes therein. 3. The wallconstruction process according to claim 1 wherein the step of castingconcrete finishing plugs is further characterized by forming the plugshaving a substantially flat end surface and a periphery at the endsurface which is substantially identical to the periphery of the holesin the wall at the wall surface.

4. A process for constructing a wall including the steps of:

installing tie rod assemblies each including a rod having opposedshoulders and plastic cones positioned on opposite sides of theshoulders between opposed forms with the cones engaging both the formsand the shoulders of the tie rods to maintain a predetermined spacingbetween the forms; casting a cementuous material in the space betweenthe forms and thereby forming a wall; subsequently removing the formsand thereby exposing opposed wall surfaces; removing the plastic conesfrom at least one side of the wall and thereby exposing conical holes inat least one of the wall surfaces; and

thereafter mounting a preformed finishingplug similar in shape to theplastic cones and having a substantially flat end surface which issubstantially equal in diameter to the diameter of the holes at the wallsurface in each of the holes with the end surface of the finishing plugextending flush with the wall surface and with the finishing plug snuglyreceived in the hole so as to be at least partially mechanicallyretained therein.

5. The process for constructing a wall according to claim 4:

wherein the tie rods further comprise portions ini tially projectingthrough the forms;

wherein the step of removing the plastic cones includes the step ofremoving the projecting portions of the tie rods; and

wherein the step of mounting preformed finishing plugs in the holes isfurther characterized by mounting finishing plugs which aresubstantially identical in shape to the plastic cones but which aresubstantially shorter than the plastic cones so as to accommodateportions of the tie rod projecting into the holes in the wall.

6. A process for constructing concrete walls compriserecting a wall formassembly comprising spaced forms, tie rods extending between the forms,and members mounted on the tie rods and engaging the forms to maintain apredetermined spacing therebetween;

filling the space between the forms with concrete;

allowing the concrete to set and thereby forming a wall;

subsequently removing the forms and thereby exposing at least one wallsurface;

removing the forms engaging members from at least one end of each tierod and thereby exposing holes corresponding in shape to the formsengaging members in the exposed wall surface;

forming finishing plugs which are substantially identical in shape tobut shorter than the forms engaging members; applying a bonding agent toeach finishing plug; positioning a finishing plug in each exposed holein the wall surface with the end of the plug extending substantiallyflush with the wall surface and thereby providing an open space at thebottom of the hole for accommodating the tie rod end; and

setting the bonding agent to secure the finishing plugs in the holes.

7. The process for constructing concrete walls according to claim 6further characterized by:

casting concrete finishing plugs each having a substantially flat endsurface; and

positioning the finishing plugs in the exposed holes in the wall surfacewith the end surfaces of the plugs extending flush with the wallsurface.

8. The process for constructing concrete walls according to claim 7wherein the forms engaging members are conical in shape so that the stepof removing the forms engaging members produces conical holes in theexposed wall surface and wherein the step of casting finishing plugscomprises casting conical members which are substantially identical inshape to but which are substantially shorter than the conical formsengaging members.

adjacent the wall surface; subsequently presoaking the finishing plugsin water;

coating the presoaked finishing plugs with a liquid cementuous material;

positioning the coated finishing plugs in the holes to partially fillthe holes and thereby form a flush wall surface; and

setting the liquid cementuous material to retain the finishing plugs inthe holes.

1. A wall construction process including the steps of: casting aconcrete wall of the type comprising a wall surface having a pluralityof exposed holes in it at least some of which extend to exposed tie rodend portions; casting concrete finishing plugs each shaped substaNtiallyidentically to the portion of each hole in the wall adjacent the wallsurface and each substantially shorter than the holes; and mounting theconcrete plugs in the holes to fill the portions of the holes adjacentthe wall and thereby form a flush wall surface.
 2. The wall constructionprocess according to claim 1 wherein the step of casting a concrete wallis further characterized by: engaging a wall form with rigid cones toposition the wall form; filling the space adjacent the wall form and thecones with concrete; setting the concrete; and thereafter removing thewall form and the rigid cones and thereby exposing the wall surface andthe holes therein.
 3. The wall construction process according to claim 1wherein the step of casting concrete finishing plugs is furthercharacterized by forming the plugs having a substantially flat endsurface and a periphery at the end surface which is substantiallyidentical to the periphery of the holes in the wall at the wall surface.4. A process for constructing a wall including the steps of: installingtie rod assemblies each including a rod having opposed shoulders andplastic cones positioned on opposite sides of the shoulders betweenopposed forms with the cones engaging both the forms and the shouldersof the tie rods to maintain a predetermined spacing between the forms;casting a cementuous material in the space between the forms and therebyforming a wall; subsequently removing the forms and thereby exposingopposed wall surfaces; removing the plastic cones from at least one sideof the wall and thereby exposing conical holes in at least one of thewall surfaces; and thereafter mounting a preformed finishing plugsimilar in shape to the plastic cones and having a substantially flatend surface which is substantially equal in diameter to the diameter ofthe holes at the wall surface in each of the holes with the end surfaceof the finishing plug extending flush with the wall surface and with thefinishing plug snugly received in the hole so as to be at leastpartially mechanically retained therein.
 5. The process for constructinga wall according to claim 4: wherein the tie rods further compriseportions initially projecting through the forms; wherein the step ofremoving the plastic cones includes the step of removing the projectingportions of the tie rods; and wherein the step of mounting preformedfinishing plugs in the holes is further characterized by mountingfinishing plugs which are substantially identical in shape to theplastic cones but which are substantially shorter than the plastic conesso as to accommodate portions of the tie rod projecting into the holesin the wall.
 6. A process for constructing concrete walls comprising:erecting a wall form assembly comprising spaced forms, tie rodsextending between the forms, and members mounted on the tie rods andengaging the forms to maintain a predetermined spacing therebetween;filling the space between the forms with concrete; allowing the concreteto set and thereby forming a wall; subsequently removing the forms andthereby exposing at least one wall surface; removing the forms engagingmembers from at least one end of each tie rod and thereby exposing holescorresponding in shape to the forms engaging members in the exposed wallsurface; forming finishing plugs which are substantially identical inshape to but shorter than the forms engaging members; applying a bondingagent to each finishing plug; positioning a finishing plug in eachexposed hole in the wall surface with the end of the plug extendingsubstantially flush with the wall surface and thereby providing an openspace at the bottom of the hole for accommodating the tie rod end; andsetting the bonding agent to secure the finishing plugs in the holes. 7.The process for constructing concrete walls according to claim 6 furthercharacterized by: casting concrete finisHing plugs each having asubstantially flat end surface; and positioning the finishing plugs inthe exposed holes in the wall surface with the end surfaces of the plugsextending flush with the wall surface.
 8. The process for constructingconcrete walls according to claim 7 wherein the forms engaging membersare conical in shape so that the step of removing the forms engagingmembers produces conical holes in the exposed wall surface and whereinthe step of casting finishing plugs comprises casting conical memberswhich are substantially identical in shape to but which aresubstantially shorter than the conical forms engaging members.
 9. Theprocess for constructing concrete walls according to claim 8 includingthe additional steps of presoaking the finishing plugs in water andthereafter coating the finishing plugs with a liquid cementuous materialprior to positioning the plugs in the exposed holes of the wall surface.10. A wall construction process including the steps of: casting aconcrete wall of the type comprising a wall surface having a pluralityof exposed holes in it; casting concrete finishing plugs shapedsubstantially identically to the portion of each hole in the walladjacent the wall surface; subsequently presoaking the finishing plugsin water; coating the presoaked finishing plugs with a liquid cementuousmaterial; positioning the coated finishing plugs in the holes topartially fill the holes and thereby form a flush wall surface; andsetting the liquid cementuous material to retain the finishing plugs inthe holes.